The instant invention relates to protective eyewear and more particularly to a safety eyeglass assembly and to a carrier therefor which is adapted for use with corrective lenses.
The importance of wearing safety glasses in many industrial environments is widely recognized, and as a result, a variety of different types of safety eyeglasses have been heretofore available. However, only a relatively small number of the heretofore available safety eyeglasses have been adapted to incorporate corrective lenses, and therefore, it has frequently been common practice for wearers of safety eyeglasses, who also require corrective eyeglasses, to use relatively large cumbersome safety eyewear which can be worn over conventional corrective eyeglasses. However, this practice has been found to be unsatisfactory because it requires users to wear cumbersome, uncomfortable safety eyewear, and also because it requires users to look through two sets of lenses, i.e. both corrective lenses and safety lenses or shields. In order to overcome the problem of requiring users to wear bulky and cumbersome safety eyewear in addition to corrective eyewear, several manufacturers have produced safety eyewear which are adapted for mounting corrective lenses behind the safety lenses or shields thereof. However, eyewear of this type have also required users to look through two sets of lenses. Still further, while safety eyeglass frames have been heretofore available which have been adapted for receiving corrective lenses so that users only have to look through the corrective lenses, these safety eyeglass frames have generally been embodied as modified versions of conventional eyewear which, in many instances, have not provided adequate safety protection. Further, for the most part, eyeglass frames of this type have been found to lack versatility, and they have not provided users with the option of changing frame colors, etc.
The instant invention provides a novel and effective safety eyeglass assembly which is adapted for use with corrective lenses and which has a high degree of versatility. Specifically, the assembly of the instant invention comprises a carrier which is adapted for receiving corrective lenses therein and a frame which is adapted to be detachably and adjustably secured to the carrier. The carrier is adapted for receiving corrective lenses therein so that during use a user is only required to look through the corrective lenses and not through an additional lens or safety shield. Further, the carrier is adapted to be releasibly secured to the frame so that a user can interchange the frame for another frame of the same type, but of a different color or appearance.
Still more specifically, the safety eyeglass assembly of the instant invention comprises a carrier which is integrally molded from a clear transparent plastic material and which includes a front panel portion having a nose receiving portion and left and right lens receiving apertures therein which are adapted for snap-receiving corrective lenses. Specifically, the carrier is formed so that the peripheries of the lens apertures have V-shaped lens receiving grooves therein having enlarged posterior lips which allow lenses to be snap received therein from the front side of the carrier, but which prevent lenses from being disengaged therefrom in a rearward direction. The carrier further comprises left and right side shields extending rearwardly from left and right side extremities of the front panel portion, and left and right upper shields extending between left and right upper extremity portions of the front panel portion, and the left and right side shields, respectively. The carrier further comprises left and right lower shields extending between left and right lower extremity portions of the front panel portion and the left and right side shields, respectively. Accordingly, the carrier provides a clear transparent unit which is adapted for snap-receiving lenses therein and for effectively protecting the eyes of a wearer.
The eyeglass assembly further comprises a frame portion which is detachably and adjustably secured to the carrier, and which includes left and right temple frame portion and a cross bar portion extending between the temple frame portions in front of the carrier. The cross bar portion includes a front bar portion which extends in front of the front panel portion of the carrier and left and right side bar portions which extend along the left and right side shields, respectively, of the carrier. The front bar portion is preferably secured to the front panel portion of the carrier at a center pivot point, and the left and right side bar portions are preferably detachably secured to the left and right side shields, respectively, such that the left and right side bar portions are vertically adjustable relative to the left and right side shields, respectively, for adjusting the angular orientation of the frame relative to the carrier. The front panel portion of the carrier preferably includes a main front plate portion having left and right lens apertures therein and left and right rearwardly recessed upper portions above the left and right lens apertures, respectively. The front bar portion passes along the rearwardly recessed portions and it is, therefore, recessed at least partially rearwardly from the main front panel portion along the opposite upper side portions of the front panel portion. As a result, the main front plate portion can be constructed in a somewhat flatter configuration so as to position corrective lenses received in the left and right lens apertures more directly in front of the eyes of a user resulting in a reduction of the angle of the corrective lenses to the eyes of the user. Further, the left and right upper shields preferably extend rearwardly from the left and right rearwardly recessed portions, respectively, and the temple frame portions are preferably telescopically adjustable to different lengths.
It has been found that safety eyeglass assembly of the instant invention has significant advantages over the heretofore available safety eyeglasses. Specifically, because the carrier is integrally molded from a clear transparent plastic material and adapted for snap receiving corrective lenses therein, the eyeglass assembly of the subject invention provides clear, unobstructed viewing through a single set of lenses. Further, because the carrier is removable from the frame, the frame can be interchanged with another frame of a different color or appearance by simply disassembling the carrier with the lenses therein from the original frame and assembling it with a new frame. Still further, because of the unitized construction of the carrier and the manner in which it is adapted for snap receiving corrective lenses therein, the carrier with the lenses received therein provides highly effective eye protection. Still further, the overall construction of the carrier enables the safety eyeglasses of the subject invention to be comfortably and effectively worn by a user for a prolonged period of time.
Accordingly, it is a primary object of the instant invention to provide an effective safety eyeglass assembly which is adapted for use with corrective lenses.
Another object of the instant invention is to provide a safety eyeglass assembly comprising a removable carrier which is adapted for snap receiving corrective lenses therein.
An even still further object of the instant invention is to provide a safety eyeglass assembly comprising a carrier which is adapted for receiving corrective lenses therein and a frame which is detachable from the carrier for interchanging the frame with another frame of a different color or appearance.
Other objects, features and advantages of the invention shall become apparent as the description thereof proceeds when considered in connection with the accompanying illustrative drawings.